Five Tips For Becoming A Successful Digital Nomad

I know a lot of you are grinding on your online projects now trying to create enough income to move to paradise. I know there are several of my members who are already living the dream. I’ve been traveling while working online for the past three years and I wanted to share a few tips with you. I’ve made a lot of mistakes but I finally found my own groove. So here it is.

Tips For Becoming A Successful Digital Nomad

1. Create Your Workspace

When I first moved to Asia I would do a lot of my work from coffee shops. That’s a very popular thing to do out here and it seems like any cafe you go to in south east Asia you will see some farang sitting there staring at his macbook.

Working at a cafe is a natural tendency because working online can be a very lonely existence. Honestly, it sucks being stuck in your room all day. I love hanging out at cool cafes and being around other people. Even if I’m alone, sitting at a cafe still gives me a good feeling of being out and about. But the fact is, I can’t get any meaningful work done at a cafe.

Cafes are great places to bullshit with friends, read books and surf the web. I love to consume content at cafes, but when it comes to creating content of any kind, I do my best work locked away in my room. Just me and my laptop.

Therefore, my room is my office. I used to rent any old hotel room when traveling. I still do to be honest. I’m still on a budget these days. But the one thing I need is a decent table. Not a little desk, not a coffee table, but a decent sized table of normal height that I can spread out all my shit on.

I’ve tried working on these tiny hotel desks which can barely fit a laptop and a cup of coffee. That sucks. I’ve also rented apartments where the only sitting area was a couch and a coffee table. Hunching over a little ass coffee table for hours will kill your back, give you a headache and make you want to get up and run out of your apartment. Hardly conducive to hours of grinding online.

I like a large kitchen table where I can place my laptop, a notepad with pen, my phone and something to drink. I often eat while watching videos or listening to audiobooks so I need the table to be large enough to push everything back a bit. Then I can eat my rice without flinging it all over my keyboard. 😀

Try A Standing Desk

I also like to work standing up. I find it gets annoying after a while so I usually switch between sitting and standing every thirty minutes or so. I have a big box that I place on my table which brings the height of everything to standing height. At some point I will buy a smaller coffee table that can stack onto my kitchen table.

Standing desks are great. You can maintain good posture while you work and it keeps my energy levels up. Eventually it gets tiring so I take a seat. But when I start slumping over and feeling groggy then I stand up again. Give it a shot sometime. You might like it.

2. Set Your Schedule

This is another big one. It’s hard to bang away on a project if you don’t have a set schedule. Guys ask me “why haven’t you gone to the Philippines yet?” Or, “why are you still in Vietnam?” The answer is, I’m comfortable here. I’m settled in. I have my schedule. I have my gym. I know what cafes, bars and restaurants I like. I know where to get my laundry done. I have my harem of snappers ready to service me. ?

If I go to the Philippines I will be in “tourist mode” for at least a month. Bouncing from hotel to hotel, partying like an animal, sleeping in, dating sexy Filipina girls, exploring the islands. Sounds like a blast! But the fact is, I will be getting no work done during this time.

Know Yourself

Me personally, my mind is a lump of shit in the morning. I’m usually hung over and sore from the gym. Winning combination I know…

I usually wake up around 8am, go outside and have breakfast. I surf the web and read online for an hour while I sip my black iced coffee.

I’m usually back home in front of my laptop by 9:30. By then I’m awake, buzzing on caffeine and ready to crank on my work.

This morning block of time is my most productive time. From about 10-1 I focus on my most important tasks of the day. My phone is usually on airplane mode and I try to focus on crushing my “to do list.”

Afternoon I take a break for fitness, eat lunch and take a short nap. Then around 3 I have another evening session of work. Sometimes I cut it at 7 and go out for dinner and drinks. Some nights I skip dinner and grind until 11-12. Then I creep out of my room for a few beers and a late night dinner. Just depends on how I’m feeling.

The point is, this is what works for me. I’m not a morning person. I can’t open my laptop and focus on work first thing in the morning. Also, I find I’m most alert at night so that’s why I work late on many nights.

3. Take Breaks

As you can see in my last point, I rarely work longer then 3 hours in one sitting. If I try to lock in and grind long hours, I find my work suffers and productivity goes way down… Hour four usually rolls around and I catch myself staring off into space thinking about random shit that has nothing to do with work.

Don’t fight this… It’s natural. If you’re burnt out then stand up. Go outside. Take a walk. Listen to music. Take a nap. Get a massage. Get a BJ. Have lunch with friends. Just unplug for a few hours. Once you relax your mind a bit you can get back to your work and grind with intense focus.

4. Exercise

Working online sucks and I hate it. Ok obviously making money online is awesome and it’s the sole reason why the last three years of my life has been one long ass awesome vacation. But certain aspects of it sucks…

Not only is this good for your body, it’s good for your mind! I’m always in a great mood after my work outs. If I’m pissed off and feeling negative, I’ll have a killer work out and suddenly I’m singing songs, smiling and saying hello to everyone I walk by. 😀

The human body was built for movement. Running, lifting, climbing, fucking. Sitting at a desk and staring at a screen all day will leave you stiff, overweight and depressed. Get outdoors. Sweat. Feel the sunshine on your face! 🙂

5. Hang With Like Minded Individuals

This is one area I need to work on. I’m antisocial when it comes to random dudes I meet on the street. In my head I’m usually thinking, I don’t know this fuck. I’m not going to tell him my life story. If you met me you’d probably think I’m a shady character because I don’t like talking about personal shit with strangers. Odd because I have this blog where I spill my guts to the world… But that’s how it is.

Admittedly, this is a dumb move. You need to hang around like minded individuals for motivation and guidance. The famous saying goes “you are the sum total of your five best friends.” So if you hang with four rich men then you’re bound to be the fifth. Choose your company wisely.

In south east Asia, you may find yourself hanging with losers who you would never talk to back in your home town. I fell into this trap a few times myself. It happens. You’re in a new city. You don’t know anyone. You meet some other foreign guys who are around your age and like to party. Awesome! Best friends for life! 😀

Then you quickly realize that the only thing you have in common with these guys is the fact that you both like to have a few beers on the weekend. Hey I’m all for chatting and shooting the shit with people but do you really want to meet up with these guys and have mindless conversations every day?

The Internet Connects Everyone

Obviously nothing can take the place of a real meaningful friendship where you see the person face to face. However, if you’re trapped with no like minded individuals to chat with then turn to the internet.

There are plenty of good websites out there to network with fellow Entrepreneurs. You can even check out my forum! We have our fun, but we also talk business and making money online. I would be happy if you joined the tribe! 🙂

I often find myself feeling down in the dumps about business. The life of an entrepreneur has its ups and downs. When I’m feeling like shit, I’ll have a chat with some positive people on the forums and suddenly I’m feeling pumped and ready to crush it online again. 😀

We all have bad days. That’s normal. Just don’t make the mistake of getting stuck in a rut. Having positive and outgoing friends to chat with is one sure way to pull yourself out of your negative mind state.

I wish you all luck on your journey to success. Grind hard, enjoy the ride. Cheers!